Mike Nolan

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Viewing 15 posts - 6,121 through 6,135 (of 7,704 total)
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  • in reply to: Reducing Saturated Fat #13269
    Mike Nolan
    Keymaster

      When I switched from using margarine and/or shortening to using mainly butter, my serum cholesterol went down and my good/bad cholesterol ratio improved too. My doctor asked what I did to change it, I told him I started eating more butter.

      in reply to: What are You Baking the Week of August 19, 2018? #13267
      Mike Nolan
      Keymaster

        I've seen one pizzeria that puts huge basil leaves on and throws the pie under the broiler for 10 seconds, but otherwise it is usually added as the pie comes out of the oven.

        in reply to: What are You Baking the Week of August 19, 2018? #13256
        Mike Nolan
        Keymaster

          I haven't baked or cooked much in the last two weeks, today we had eggs for breakfast, toast with cheese or peanut butter for lunch and custard for supper. (My wife is essentially on the BRAT diet at the moment.)

          in reply to: Question about Durum Flour and Semolina #13255
          Mike Nolan
          Keymaster

            I believe that semolina is not considered a whole grain product, because it's essentially just the endosperm from the durum wheat berry that isn't pulverized into a fine powder after stripping off the bran and germ. (The same thing is true with couscous.)

            Durum flour may or may not be a whole grain flour, most of the durum flours I've seen are not whole grain flours.

            in reply to: Reducing Saturated Fat #13254
            Mike Nolan
            Keymaster

              Recent studies suggest that dietary cholesterol has little or no impact on blood cholesterol and heart health.

              For example, see cholesterol study

              Eggs were nearly outlawed by the 'food police' over the last few decades, but it turns out they're actually good for you. It also appears that butter is better for you than most margarines.

              in reply to: How are the 2018 Gardens Progressing? #13240
              Mike Nolan
              Keymaster

                I picked our first tomato the other day and had it for lunch. In two weeks we're going to be swimming in them.

                in reply to: What are you baking the week of August 12, 2018? #13211
                Mike Nolan
                Keymaster

                  Some years ago we visited a friend in El Paso and he recommended a German restaurant that had the best apple strudel I've ever had. The waitress said they made about 50 pounds of it every day and most of it got sent out to their mail order customers.

                  in reply to: What are you baking the week of August 12, 2018? #13207
                  Mike Nolan
                  Keymaster

                    I like the all-butter piecrust recipe I learned at pastry school, but I also like Darina Allen's Irish Apple Cake recipe, which uses butter, egg and milk, and it goes very well with the apple pie filling recipe I learned at pastry school. It has the advantage of being somewhat faster to make, too.

                    The last two times I made it I made a 1.5 X batch using 2 eggs, which filled 9 ramekins, with the extra egg the batter comes out so moist you can't roll it out, but I really like how it bakes up.

                    I've been using pastry flour for it as well.

                    in reply to: What are you baking the week of August 12, 2018? #13205
                    Mike Nolan
                    Keymaster

                      I've never tried making strudel dough. My wife says she made it once with her mother and a huge table.

                      This video almost makes it look easy, but there's years of experience at work there!
                      strudel video

                      in reply to: Bön Appetit: The Decline of a Cooking Magazine? #13189
                      Mike Nolan
                      Keymaster

                        I stopped reading Bon Appetit so long ago that James Beard was probably still alive the last time I read it.

                        in reply to: Pastry Week on the Great British Baking Show #13182
                        Mike Nolan
                        Keymaster

                          I've lost track of which season they're doing on PBS.

                          I thought Mary Berry left after season 7 when it moved from BBC to Channel 4, when she decided to stay on PBS rather than move over to TV4 like Paul Hollywood did.

                          According to Wikipedia, she did a one-year series about homes on BBC and is judging another cooking contest on BBC starting this year.

                          in reply to: What are You Baking the Week of August 5, 2018? #13170
                          Mike Nolan
                          Keymaster

                            Chocomouse, have you looked at making a cinnamon crumb cake? That can give you the flavor profile of a cinnamon roll in a cake form.

                            in reply to: What are You Baking the Week of August 5, 2018? #13160
                            Mike Nolan
                            Keymaster

                              When a recipe calls for lemon oil or extract, I usually cut the amount in half, because I think many recipes call for too much. Unless you're making something like lemon curd or a lemon pie, lemon should be a hint, not a punch in the face.

                              in reply to: What are You Baking the Week of August 5, 2018? #13157
                              Mike Nolan
                              Keymaster

                                I can definitely tell the difference between artificial vanilla and real vanilla.

                                in reply to: What are You Cooking the Week of August 5, 2018? #13156
                                Mike Nolan
                                Keymaster

                                  Tonight we had baby artichokes with a variety of dips, plus cheese souffle with mushroom sauce and a flan for dessert. I really nailed the caramel sauce on the flan!

                                Viewing 15 posts - 6,121 through 6,135 (of 7,704 total)